Lets jump right into it...
Bobby Effin Ryan scores a typical highlight reel goal - and I love it! We've seen so many of those from him lately, and by no means am I down playing the beauty of his goal, but I'd rather gloat about his last minute of play. With the Ducks holding on to a one goal lead, Effin is working the puck deep in the Ducks offensive zone, making some big hits and making it difficult for San Jose to clear the puck and pull Nabokov. When it comes down to it- Effin is doing more than just scoring big goals, he's making big plays and playing SMART hockey. He may be considered a rookie this season, but lately he's been playing like he's been in the NHL for years. I'm impressed to say the least.
Again, the PK was required to kill off too many penalties (I'll be getting to those). Yet again...Todd Marchant and Mike Brown were working hard, causing turnovers and making big hits. I've noticed lately, Brown has taken on the roll of pest. He's been putting pressure on the San Jose offense and you can sense they are getting frustrated, nervous and are making bad choices with the puck because of it. It's these little things that are causing San Jose to break down. The Ducks are relying heavily on this break down because, surprise, the Ducks are taking too many penalties. HOWEVER...last night seemed to be a display of the best way to take BS penalties just because of the team you play for. Anaheim fans are used to this. We're used to seeing the Ducks get penalties called simply because of the name on the FRONT of the jersey (a few times because of the name on the back...ie PRONGER). Here's something that the Ducks and fans need to remember, if these penalties start to get too much, the Ducks might back off and play a weaker defense. So personally, I'd rather see penalties get killed off like they have been, than see the Ducks watch the Sharks fly by because of a sloppy, lazy defense. Normally I'm not one to complain about officiating- bad officiating is part of this game, but these past two games have been a direct result of simply who you play for. The refs even seemed to realize that a good way to allow San Jose to score would be to put Brown in the box for a weak elbowing call and it didn't work. I don't want to hear that San Jose hasn't been getting their chances. 79 SOG and 12 PP opportunities in two games - more than enough opportunities! It's simply a matter of making the most of those opportunities and the Ducks are doing a better job of that right now. Maybe, instead of talking about what's wrong with San Jose, people should start taking note that Anaheim, THESE DUCKS- they're HOT!
It will be absolutely pointless for me to even mention what an all star Jonas Hiller is...but I'm going to do it anyway. This guy, so calm and so collected...he is a shutdown force not backing down. The worst part, while watching NHL network last night, they still don't want to give Hiller the credit. Look, I don't care if Hiller was able to see 40 of those 44 shots last night cleanly, and if that's the case, then SOMEONE in an Anaheim jersey is doing something right! Someone is keeping shooting lanes clear, someone is allowing Hiller to make great stops and give up few rebounds. But here's the thing, San Jose is clearly getting opportunities and Jonas Hiller and the Ducks' defense are doing a great job shutting the Sharks down. In addition, the Ducks are clearing the puck from the front of the net beautifully. It seems lately the Ducks defense has been a huge factor in helping to keep the crease clear and free of loose pucks. In both games 1 and 2 Ryan Getzlaf had some huge clearing saves in the crease that would have/could have been easy goals for the Sharks. Great. This is the team effort we like to see.
2nd line scoring. Huge factor in these games for both teams. The Ducks are breaking through by getting their Iowa boys involved. I feel confident that now that the scoring has come from a few areas, this team is going to continue to find ways to break trough. Andrew Ebbett and Drew Miller get some sloppy goals by simply throwing the puck to the net! Those kind of goals are the ones that are going to win you hockey games against a skilled San Jose netminder. Getting pucks to the net - always a HUGE plus!
Numbers, let's talk numbers. The Ducks have won every series when leading 2-0. The Sharks are winless when trailing in a series 2-0. I don't care. That means nothing to me. Hillers' .975 SV% in the playoffs, THAT number speaks volumes. The Ducks killing 12 straight Shark PP opportunities, THAT number is huge! The difference, Hillers numbers represent the NOW. The Ducks PK is representative of this team NOW. What the Ducks FRANCHISE has done in the PAST, what the Sharks FRANCHISE HAS NOT done in the PAST...those numbers are irrelevant. It's about the now. I won't get comfortable with a 2-0 Ducks lead in this series and no one else should either. Ducks fans have seen what the Sharks have done this season, and while yes, that was the past...we know they are still capable of that NOW. I'll be at game 3 and 4 doing what I do best for this team...SUPPORTING THEM.
I wanted game 1 more than anything. I wanted the Ducks to make all of those who had been wondering if the Sharks would school Anaheim to scratch their heads sit back and say, whoa...Anaheim isn't going to take this series lightly. Game 2, that was just icing on the cake! I strongly feel that there is no team in the Western Conference that could have come into the Shark tank and given this team a run for their money like Anaheim has. I think there are a lot of teams out there right now, looking at what the Ducks are doing and they are saying to themselves LOOK OUT, THE DUCKS ARE HOT!
Damn right baby!
GO DUCKS!!!
1 comment:
Thank you! I really appreciate that!
There are very vew things I love more than talking about Ducks hockey! ;)
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